A.L.I.E.E.E.N.

Post #808 • June 12, 2006, 7:10 PM • 2 Comments

Lewis Trondheim may or may not have found this comic in a burn circle in the Catskills, but A.L.I.E.E.E.N. is undoubtedly what he suggests it is: "...the very first extra-terrestrial comic strip for children ever discovered on our planet." These children have no fussing parents hovering over them to prevent them from seeing cruelty and bloodshed. On the contrary, cruelty and bloodshed are shown as part of the natural order, even among the big-eyed, pastel-hued homonculi that populate children's comics the galaxy over. Aliens also have four-color printing technology and dot-screens, which one can easily see in the reproduction of the comic. Written in an alphabet that looks rather like ours, except totally indecipherable, the book follows some hapless creatures as they interact, take advantage of each other, and finally succumb to an ecological disaster brought on by a blue pet that won't stop pooping. The story conveys the useful lesson that protecting the innocent is important, but that one must do so with great caution. Highly recommended, as is the game.